What Were the Chances
by OTP324B21
Summary: Cophine AU based in California. Cosima and Delphine meet by chance not once, but twice. *Note: This is for now just a one shot. I'm not sure if I'm going to continue but I might possibly be swayed if it gets a good enough response.


Hazel eyes shook with emotion behind black-framed glasses, tears threatening to spill over. "I don't understand." They were sitting together on the lawn in front of the library, having spent a suspiciously quiet hour studying. She'd known something was wrong. Normally when they were studying, they'd sit next to each other, leaning against each other's shoulder, playfully marking each other's papers, stealing pens and pencils, or something as equally as distracting. There had been none of that, all of her playful gestures being responded to by stony silence or even an irritated 'Stop' when he'd obviously had enough.

He was the same age she was, but half a foot taller, his blonde hair messy, but in a way that was obviously on purpose. He pulled his jacket on, the embroidered letter background for pins that shone like a mix between merit badges and military honors. A silver pair of oars flashed in the sun, causing the girl to blink. "I just think I'm getting to a point where I need a more mature relationship." He shouldered his backpack.

"Mature?" She blinked again, and to her frustration a tear fell, quickly wiping it away. "What the fuck, Scott." She looked around, seeing people starting to turn to watch them.

"You had to know this was happening." He slipped his sunglasses on, sufficiently hiding the pools of sky blue that she would get lost in...or rather used to get lost in. "Look Cosima, this is just what happens. You're staying here. You're going to Berkley, and I'm pretty sure you'll fit right in there." He shook his head and looked around, obviously nervous about the attention they were getting. "You're cool, and we had a lot of fun, but the pierced nose...the dreads...it's not the image I'm trying to portray when I leave for Yale." Standing up, he shook his head. "It's over."

Her lip trembling, Cosima grabbed her bag, her emotions threatening to take over. "Fine." Standing up, she cursed when she lifted her bag wrong and it dumped her books out onto the ground. "FUCK." She angrily shoved everything into her messenger bag before stomping off, not wanting to look back, not even caring that she lived two miles away and that Scott had driven her to school that day like he had for the past year. It was windy as it always was in the Bay City and she tugged up the hood of her hoodie, sufficiently blocking the wind and hiding her tear-streaked face.

When had it all gone so wrong? She knew he hadn't been happy with the piercing, but she hadn't cared. It was something she'd wanted to do since she was 10 and something she'd given herself on her 18th birthday. Her parents had been furious, but she'd sidetracked their anger with her acceptance letter to UC: Berkley. Scott had been upset, but she'd soothed his anger, or at least she thought she had at the time, with the promise of taking it out when they went to prom.

Prom.

Fuck. She kicked a rock that was sitting in the middle of the sidewalk. Her year had been going by so perfectly. She was going to college on scholarship, she had friends that she'd die for, a boyfriend who was part of a champion crew rowing team, and a few months ago she'd finally lost her...FUCK! She kicked another rock angrily. She was so fucking stupid. He had said he loved her, but she'd noticed him backing off.

"Hey!"

He hated her hair. She loved it. Everyone loved it. He hated it.

"Madamoiselle!"

Cosima spun around in alarm as a hand landed on her shoulder.

"Pardon, I did not mean to startle you."

Looking up, she found hazel eyes a lighter shade than her own looking down at her, unusually pale skin for the Sunshine state framed by waves of golden hair. Cosima blinked.

"Are you okay?"

With a hesitant nod, Cosima wiped at her eyes, knowing she was making a mess of her makeup. "Yeah, obvs." She found disbelieving eyes observing her and she licked her lips. "Sorry, did you need something?"

The blonde lifted up an envelope that had been torn open. "You dropped this at the library."

French...maybe French Canadian. Cosima couldn't tell the difference. She'd taken Latin as a second language option. Her eyes fell to the envelope and she immediately recognized it as her transcripts. It must have fallen out of her bag along with all her books. "Yeah...thanks."

"No problem." The blonde bit her bottom lip, obviously wanting to say more but hesitant. "Bad breakup?" She finally asked, hugging her own books to her chest.

Tucking the paper into her bag, Cosima adjusted her glasses with a fingertip. "Yeah...you know...we're going to different colleges..." She shrugged. She didn't want to talk about it. She didn't even want to think about it.

"Ah. Long distance...it doesn't always work. " She paused, biting her lip. "Just so you know..."

Looking up, Cosima caught a guilty look on the woman's face. She found it...adorable? That couldn't be the word...but it was the only one that fit.

"...I might have peaked. Your grades are magnifique." She had a big grin on her face now, as if trying to lighten the mood and pretend that Cosima's eyes weren't bright red and make-up smeared. She offered her hand out in greeting. "Delphine."

Accepting the hand, Cosima looked down and their joint fingers, feeling the warmth and softness of the hand that was just slightly bigger than her own. "Cosima." The grip was strong yet gentle and she reluctantly released the handshake.

"Enchante."

How could she not smile? "Enchante." She blushed slightly when she said it, the words having tumbled out of her mouth like a slow-moving car crash. Why had she taken Latin?

The blonde smirked and Cosima wondered how many different forms the lips could take and still look amazing. "Do not worry, Cosima. You'll find someone that will appreciate you, unlike that asshole." She adjusted her books, running a hand through her hair, looking at her watch.

What asshole? It took Cosima a minute to remember what had spurned the conversation. She was too lost in pools of hazel that reflected the sunlight in ways she'd never seen. With a shake of her head, she smiled. "Thanks."

Delphine smiled awkwardly. "Well I'll let you go."

Cosima bit her bottom lip, not sure what else to say.

"By the way. He's wrong."

Cosima tilted her head in question.

Delphine smiled. "Your hair…your nose ring…it adds a certain charm to you. It's beautiful." She winked and began walking away. "Don't change for anyone but yourself." She shouted over her shoulder before rushing back to the library.

Watching her walk away, Cosima was torn between turning to follow the blonde and continuing her path home. "Stop being creepy." She whispered to herself, turning to continue her way home. Looking over her shoulder at the blonde who was getting into a parked car, she smiled to herself. _Don't change for anyone but yourself._ Maybe she'd see her again.

**Two years Later**

"Oh fuck." Strong fingers locked in straight blonde hair as the woman's back arched off the bed, her body shuddering for a deliciously long moment before collapsing on the bed. "Shit." She gasped for breath as looked down to see blue eyes staring up at her, a grinning face resting on her thigh. "You are damn good at that."

The blonde smiled, moving to lay beside the woman, propping her head up on her hand. "Thanks." She reached out and traced a bicep muscle. "Hey, I have this get together later today, just some music, drinks, you know. Want to come with?"

Cosima looked at the clock and quickly sat up. "Shit. I'm going to be late for class." She rolled out of bed, tracking her underwear and slipping them up her legs that were covered in thigh-high patterned leggings. She pushed her dress down, trying to smooth out the wrinkles. "I'll call you later."

The blonde rolled her eyes, straightening her own clothes. "Do you even have my number?" She licked her lips and smirked. "Whatever, you know where I am, but something tells me not to hold my breath."

With a smirk of her own, Cosima pulled the woman forward, kissing her deeply. She could taste herself on the woman's lips and when the blonde whimpered, pulled away, quickly kissing her on the tip of her nose. "Thanks for 'lunch'." She joked before disappearing out the door.

It didn't take too long with a brisk walk to get to class, but she was still late. Sliding into a seat the empty row in the back of the classroom, Cosima took out her laptop, doing her best to start it up quietly so as not to further interrupt the class. It was a new semester and the last thing she wanted was to be "that student". She was only a second year but she knew that every class she took could affect getting into the doctorate program she wanted. Even if she hated sitting through a class on general genetics, she took notes on everything.

Truthfully she knew more about genetics than most of the students in the room, having spent most of her life scraping up all information she could find on the subject. Unfortunately, it meant that she was incredibly bored with the material, but it was a requirement for her program so she typed out the notes that were flashing by in a PowerPoint presentation. Occasionally her mind would wander, taking in the faces of the people who would be her classmates for the semester. Genetics meant lab which meant lab partners. As the professor began speaking about class expectations, she was cataloging her classmates. There were those she definitely didn't want to be paired with, such as the girl sitting in the back texting, the boy sitting not far from herself, passed out…she definitely didn't want to be paired up with the girl who was sitting in front of her, buffing her nails as she surfed a … Cosima rise an eyebrow. A sex toy website. Well…maybe she wouldn't mind a different pairing after class.

Filing the info away for later, she continued to category the students under yes, no, maybe, and not even if they were the only one on earth. She was glad to see that a majority of her classmates seemed eager to learn, unlike many other classes she participated in. With a huff, she glanced at the time, surprised to see the hour was almost up when the lights brightened, signaling the end of the PowerPoint, she began packing up her things when the side door opened up and a woman rushed in with a stack of papers.

"Je suis désolé, Madam Turner." The tall woman with wavy blonde hair spoke up. "The copier was broken so I had to go to building C." She sat the stack on the desk.

"That's fine. We still have time. Hand them out please." The Professor waved her hand. "Everyone this is Delphine Cormier. If you have any questions about course requirements or homework or frankly anything relating to you not being able to pay attention in class when the material is being presented, please see her. She will be here 30 minutes before and after every class as well as joining us in the lab on Wednesdays and Fridays."

Cosima looked at the blonde, still in shock. A memory from two years ago flashed through her mind of eyes full of sunlight and a voice that had been a soothing balm for her broken heart. She watched as the woman moved gracefully down the center of the room, counting each student before handing out a matching number of papers to the edge of each row.

Oddly she found herself at the age of 18 again, crying on the side of the road. _Don't change for anyone but yourself._ They were words she now lived by. Two years and she was a completely different person, but only because she was who she wanted to be. What were the chances that she would be here, sitting in the same class the woman was a TA for? If she had known then what she knew now, she would have followed the blonde. She would tell her how she hadn't noticed how beautiful women could be until she found herself facing those pools of sunlight.

When the woman got to her row, she knew she was the only one in it, the only one the blonde would have to make contact with, so when she neared, she looked up and smiled, the woman obviously not paying well enough attention to who she was approaching." Enchanté." She spoke as the distracted woman mindlessly handed her a set of papers. It was enough. The blonde did a double-take before a small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

"Enchanté, Cosima." Delphine responded with a wink before she turned and walked back to the front of the room.

Cosima felt the shock resonating through her entire being.

Two years had passed, and after the barest of contact, the blonde with pools of hazel touched by sunlight had remembered her name.

What were the chances?


End file.
